THE defenceless toddler became listless and immobile before she was finally received the medical attention she badly needed.

The child, who was 22-months-old at the time, had been the victim of several acts of cruelty by Michael Quilty.

It was only when the little girl developed a fever, stopped crawling, and lay with a severely swollen arm she was taken to hospital.

The couple lied to police about how the injuries had occurred, even trying to pin some of the blame on the girl’s sister, aged three at the time.

They say she dropped toys into her cot and hit her in the face with a plastic spoon and made up stories that Quilty had accidentally kicked a door into her face and that he placed her incorrectly in a high chair so that she slipped through and burnt her foot on the metal parts of a gas fire.

Medical experts challenged these explanations as the force used to inflict the injuries was too great.

The living environment of the toddler and her older sibling was also found wanting. There was no bath, only a shower, and neither was washed using the shower. They were only cleaned using baby wipes.

The victim slept in a travel cot in a room she shared with her sister. Both girls were behind in their immunisations.

The victim now lives with her sister at foster parents.

DS Julie Jackson said: “The catalogue of injuries defies belief.

“It’s hard to understand how anyone could inflict such pain on a helpless, dependant child, let alone stand by and turn a blind eye to her suffering.

“Police and the courts however, did not turn a blind eye, and today’s verdict sees justice done.

“It sends a clear message out to any bully who thinks that they have the right to hurt those more vulnerable than themselves. Such violence will not be tolerated and those who inflict it will be brought to justice and held to account by society for their actions.”